Man killed in Harvey was on his way to work, family says

The killing of a Harvey man early today marked the second time a West Bank man has been gunned down on his way to work this week. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office is still searching for a motive and suspects in the case. Ross Jackson, 47, was found dead in the 1600 block of Estalote Street in Harvey at about 4 a.m. after deputies responded to reports of gunshots in the area, said Col. John Fortunato, a sheriff's spokesman. According to friends, Jackson was riding his bicycle to work when he was shot.

Susan Poag, The Times-PicayuneJefferson Parish Sheriff's Office deputies and detectives investigated a homicide in Harvey Thursday. Ross Jackson, 47, was riding a bike on his way to work when he was shot to death shortly after 4:00 a.m. He was found lying in a field in the 1600 block of Estalote Avenue.

Investigators found several .45 caliber shell casings at the scene. Jackson body was in a vacant lot across the street from one church and less than 100 yards from another.

A resident who lives near the scene said violence has been a constant problem in the neighborhood, and earlier this week there were reports of a shootout a few blocks away. That area has been a hotspot for narcotics activity and violence for years.

Jackson was leaving the home of his girlfriend on Pailet Street at the time of the shooting, said Gilda Williams, the girlfriend's aunt. Typically Jackson would hitch a ride to the West Bank Expressway to meet his co-workers, but on Thursday, his girlfriend's car had a flat tire so he took his bicycle. Williams said Jackson was a well-liked man who had no enemies in the neighborhood.

Jackson's uncle, Kirk Lovely, echoed those sentiments, adding that his nephew was an extremely hard-working man who was focused on doing the right thing for himself and his four children. Jackson had some problems with alcohol and drugs in the past, but he had put that behind him and was going to church faithfully for the past eight months. Lovely often encouraged his nephew to keep up the good work, and it seemed like it was taking hold, he said.

"He really had changed his life," Lovely said, crediting the transformation to the efforts of Jackson's pastor at River of Life Church. "Nobody always does the right thing... But lately he's been walking a narrow road.

Lovely said Jackson would go to work as a "hopper" on the back of the garbage truck in the morning, and then come home and wash cars in front of his church to earn some extra money. Jackson never shirked from working, and his uncle said he would often marvel at where he found the energy every day.

Jackson never said he was concerned for his safety or that he was having any problems with anyone, Lovely said.